x1/9 engine work needed near London

Hi,
My '84 VS could do with a little engine work. The engine stutters when you put your foot down and open up the second carb jet. It also is blowing some blue smoke on start-up. Could anyone recommend a mechanic who is familiar with our cars and is not too far away from NW London? Thanks.

If you have some basic skills you should be able to do this yourself. The blue smoke could be worn valve stems or seals. However it is possible to live with this if the car is not using too much oil. You could even use thicker oil or one of the "instant cures" I put some in my car and it smokes less, i can't believe it myself. It just passed the MOT computerised emmisions test.
As for the stuttering you need the carburetor sorted.
you can do this yourself but if you can find a good specialist it would be quicker but not cheap.
Making sure there are no air leaks at the base is a start, cleaning the jets and making SURE they are the right way around will help.
A timing light helps, they are only £25
My car would only run on full choke when I bought it, but it is sweet now.

Thanks, David. The oil smoke is not a big deal. It is only there if the car has been sitting around and clears in 5 or 6 seconds. It would be good to find someone to sort out the carburetor. I am not up to doing this myself. The car starts well and runs beautifully apart from the stutter when opening the second carb choke. Like you say, I am guessing the second choke jet needs sorting out, probably just cleaning as it doesn't get used much. The problem nowadays is there are very few people who know how to work on carbs.

If you want a phone call give me a private message, Carburetors only seem hard. i taught myself, so can you.

Had a good chat with David who suggested a variety of things for me to try and gave me the confidence to give them a go, starting with taking out the jets and cleaning them. Thanks, David, for your advice.